"And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there,

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"except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me.

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"But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Fear of failure, baggage from the past, or envy of the heart are some things that can motivate us. In this message, Chip Lusko examines these natural impulses and shares the godly attributes that should motivate us to run the Christian race well.

Calvary Albuquerque is regularly host to special guest speakers. This series includes messages from many great Bible teachers including; Pancho Juarez, Mike Finizio, Don McClure, Bill Welch and others. These messages can be purchased as CDs from our online store, or by calling 1-800-922-1888.

Transcript

We pursue the God who is passionately pursuing a lost world. We do this with one another through worship by the word to the world.

Well, good evening everybody. Welcome, welcome, good to see you here. If you have a Bible, and I'm sure you do, open it to the book of Acts chapter 20, the book of Acts chapter 20 and we're going to be just in a couple of verses there. Verse 22 will be our beginning. Where we find that Paul wrote, and I see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, except the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. But none of these things move me, nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify of the gospel of the grace of God.

Lord, we thank you tonight for your word. As we open it, open our hearts. Help this time to be truthful and graceful, powerful and practical, in Jesus' name, amen.

Amen.

Take your memory back to the glory days of the space shuttle. I recall the first time I ever understood how they were going to transport it from California back to Florida, because you see they were reusable and they took off from Cape Canaveral or Cape Kennedy in Florida, but they landed in Palmdale near Edwards Air Force Base and the problem was, how do you get it back from California to Florida? Towing it along I-40 would be kind of dicey going nationwide.

So could you just imagine the meeting at NASA within Houston or somewhere in Florida, and they say, how are we going to get this thing back, and the engineer had to raise his hand and go, let's put it on top of a 747 and fly it back. I mean, Photoshop didn't exist in these days, so when I first saw it, I thought, no way are they going to fly this thing and take off, and then go to 30,000 feet, but they did time and time again. In fact, they flew it to Europe like that. They flew it all over-- all over the world and there's a principle here that we find in this example, and then our text tonight, because when this plane, which is extreme, or any plane takes off, two laws are in conflict with each other.

We've all been on a jet airplane of some kind and you know that feeling rumbling down the runway and you get to a certain point where the pilot is putting the yoke forward, putting the accelerator forward and pulling back on the yoke and the plane trembles. Just that moment of kind of rumbling and what's happening in that moment is two laws are in conflict with one another, because you've got your law of gravity that's saying, you aren't going anywhere. Forget about flying, you're stay right here, and that's pulling down on the plane, but then you have the equally valid laws of aerodynamics and they're saying lift and thrust and payload in flight.

And so in that moment the laws are really in tension and in conflict and which one wins depends upon the thrust and the power of the plane. That's the principle we see in the Christian life in the contradiction of unbelievable behavior by well meeting Christians and we find that in Romans chapter 7, where the Bible talks about that very law, because Paul says there, I delight in the law of God. Ah, but then I see another law in my members.

We might paraphrase that and don't turn there, but it's Roman 7:22 and 23 and he said, I delight in the law of God, OK. That's the lift, but I see another law at work in my members. That's the gravity and that's the war, the Civil War, for your will that's going on in your life. Those laws are at work in your life today. One wants to draw you back to things Earthly, to things sensual, to things of this world, and keep you down and grounded here and it's a valid law, but the law of lift is law of the Holy Spirit, the law of delighting in the word of God, the law of a God who wanted you to soar and have a fruitful, productive kingdom life.

And the question is, which law is winning in your life? So we have these opposing forces at work in our life resulting in sometimes puzzling behavior and that famous phrase, I thought you were a Christian. Detectives solved a mystery like that using two fundamental principles, motive and opportunity. You see that in shows all the time. Did they have a reason to do the crime and did they have the opportunity to do so, and so the first thing we look at tonight is our motives. That's the name of our study, motive.

What makes us do what we do? Why do you make the choices that you make and what does it take to rock your boat and what will you do when it gets rocked, because it will. Jesus said you will have tribulation in this world. The question is, what moves you? What does it take to move you, to motivate you, to have you change your choices, rearrange your priorities and make a difference of how you're living?

So as a case example, we find this story in the book of Acts in the final chapters of Paul's life, who understood this struggle very well. He's the one who wrote, of course, Romans chapter 7. He wrote-- he lived out this passage in the book of Acts. We find in verses 22 and 23, Paul is facing a dangerous future. He's in Ephesus, a church he founded in Turkey. He's with the Ephesian.

It was very success-- big success story for Paul and he's there on his last journey to visit that church and he says-- he wants to go to Jerusalem and he says, but the Holy Spirit is saying tribulation and chains await me and as he made progress toward the journey, more and more people warned him of what might happen and he understood it would be a dark day for him. But the pivotal phrase is right there and we need to look at it very carefully, but none of these things move me. That was Paul's attitude towards knowing what was going to happen to him-- to him.

What's curious about this story is that Paul, of course, did go to Jerusalem, did have Festus and Felix and all the rest and what happened to him in both Jerusalem and Caesarea. But what's very interesting is that Paul-- the dream that Paul had was to go to Rome. Paul wanted to go and preach in the queen city of the world, the capital of the Roman Empire, and God in this case did not have a direct flight. God had a connecting flight in Jerusalem for him.

For Paul to get what he really wanted, he had to do something that was dangerous, because he went-- he went to Jerusalem, which he knew it was going to be dicey, but it got him to Rome and our God is like that sometimes. He's giving us nonstop flights, giving us connecting flight through a place. We may not want to stop at Indianapolis on our way to Maui, but sometimes that's the way it works.

What moves you? Abraham Maslow had a-- he's a behaviorist. He came up with the theory of human motivation, the theory of human motivation. If you can imagine you can make a note of a pyramid It's very simple, a pyramid in the bottom rung, the bottom third of the pyramid is survival, air, water, food, the instinct for procreation. That's what the basic motivation for all mankind, we share that and we share that with the animal kingdom, of course, as well.

You get up in the morning, you don't think about eating you go foraging about in the refrigerator, because that's just instinctive. It is a drive that we all have, but a little bit of the pyramid, the next rung comes safety and shelter, and then finally you move up two more rungs and you find first belonging, and then you find self-esteem and belonging we do share also with the animal kingdom. They travel in packs and hordes and flocks and whatnot and we're tribal. We have communities and cities and conglomerates. We don't like to be alone, we gather together.

That's a natural instinct that we have and this is where we part ways with the animals, at the-- at the point of belonging, because they're tribal and we're tribal, but they don't have a sense of self esteem, of self identity, of self actualization. And the next wrong, the final rung up to the top of the pyramid is a need to make a difference, the need to make an impact and animals don't have that.

I know you cat people are going to be distraught about this, but fluffy is not laying by the fire thinking esoteric thoughts about his legacy and what not. They're thinking, did you get the tuna fish, and so this is what distinguishes mankind as a motivator, that we're motivated by the basic survival instinct, but there's more than that. It's richer and deeper, the need the need to express ourselves and to make-- and to have making a difference and to have self-esteem and at the same time, many negative forces are being exerted upon your life, on your soul to motivate you, to move you in carnal directions, even in evil directions. Some of them are spiritual, some of them are demonic, some of them are just earthly and sensual.

The Bible-- the Bible wisely warns us to pay attention to our motives. Jesus said that pride and notoriety are infamous destroyers of pure motives. He said beware of practicing your righteousness as a motive before other people in order to be seen of them. So that's a poor, faulty, inferior motive. Likewise, Philippians says, do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. So don't act out of pride, don't act out of ego.

So for tonight I've chosen to look at three more of the worst offenders of inferior, faulty, and even dangerous motivators, motives in our lives, issues that are faulty, the fear of failure, the baggage from the past, and the envy and pride of the heart. These are the three we're going to examine tonight as we keep in context that Paul let none of these things move him. He was rock solid. He set his face as Jesus did, like a flint to complete his mission.

Fear of failure, fear of being found out, Pastor John Bevere has written a book called Killing Kryptonite. And recently he had a devotional come out of that that talks about his addiction to pornography prior to becoming a Christian. And he couldn't shake it once he got saved and went into the ministry, and it obviously hounded him and plagued him. And he tried the typical techniques to overcome an addiction like that and was unsuccessful and he came to realize that his motive for stopping the pornography habit was his fear of being found out and damaging his ministry. And then once he pivoted to the fear of damaging his relationship with Jesus, he found victory.

You see, his motive changed and his method changed and that brought him closer in relationship to God, that pure motive and that's just the motive of the fear of failure, because fear is a strong driving factor in our life, the fear of letting other people down, the fear of not achieving certain goals that are set before us. These things can all motivate us in a very powerful way, because we have a desire to please, a desire to reach and to have goals and whatnot and there's nothing wrong with being a driven and successful person, but when that's your prime motivation for what you do spiritually, that's when you're headed for trouble.

Fear is definitely a faulty motivator, and then the past can motivate us, because we bring habits and addictions and guilt into our Christian experience and sometimes we try to make up for them and sometimes we're burdened down by them and we think, this is the way that we are and they become a motivator to deaden and dampen our enthusiasm for things of the kingdom. We think, well, I just could never-- I could never be, I could never do, I could never achieve, and people unfortunately contribute to that.

Now you look at that space shuttle and you have to imagine that any human being, I mean any human being up until 1960 or so, the jet age after the Korean War would look at that-- and that weighed, by the way, just under a million pounds, a mil-- a million pounds of metal. The 747's about a half a million and the space shuttle's about $200,000 in petrol and whatnot, but any human being would look at that and go, there's no way that's ever going to fly.

There's one guy that went oh-- Galileo would say no, Newton would certainly say no, Copernicus would say no. One guy might say, well, Leonardo da Vinci would go, I think I can work with that and he might believe in it. Well let me tell you something, the same thing is true about you. People look at your life and say, that person, that much baggage, that much weight, that much background, no way they can fly for Jesus.

If one guy who looks at you and says, I think I can work with that, it's Jesus and he wants to be in cooperation with you. He says, you can fly. I don't care what your past is like. I know what your future can be like and it's all about your present decision to serve, submit, and to follow him and so baggage is a problem. Jesus said, my burden is easy, my yoke is light, and we often are burdened down by the cares of the church and cares of the world and Jesus said, I didn't put that rock in your backpack. I am not the one that gave you that. If you're carrying a heavy burden to serve the Lord, you've got to lighten up your load. That's not the way God rolls. He wants you to enjoy serving him.

Yes there are trials and troubles and there is time for sacrifice and whatnot, but the matter of fact is that he gives you a light burden and easy yoke. In fact, I would submit to you, there's only one burden you should be carrying. It's true, just one burden and that is the burden of his glory. You see, the word glory in the Hebrew means weight and you're carrying the heaviest and the lightest thing in the world when you carry the glory of God. We bear the glory of God into the world. That's heavy.

It's "kavod" in the Hebrew and we have the opportunity to bring the light. The glory of God brings the shekinah glory of God, the supernatural light and a Christian who is walking with the Lord and walking in purity and walking in daily devotion with him, there's a luminescence about them. You glo-- we glow in the dark. You can tell a person whose got the-- it's the joy of the Lord and the Bible says the joy of the Lord will be our strength.

Sometimes I want to-- I have to say to myself and sometimes I want to say to my coworkers and people around where's the joy of the Lord here? This is like a funeral, as if he was moping around or what not. Where's the zeal, where's the passion, where's the joy, where's the promise? The joy of the Lord, and so that's heavy to carry his gl-- to bear-- that's all you need to carry. You carry the glory and he'll carry the rest. He carries the rest of the burden for you.

Fear, baggage, the habits, the addictions we bring into this life, and the Holy Spirit will allow you to overcome them. You can be more than a conqueror with whatever you're struggling with tonight. Whatever's rocking your world tonight, and if we passed around a legal pad, wow, it would be an amazing list right now and I would write all my stuff down too. We've all got things that are threatening to rock our worlds. We've all had those paralyzing phone calls, have we not?

I can think of about a half a dozen in my life. In fact, one just this summer. I got a phone call. I was standing up outside and I literally couldn't move my feet. My wife will tell you, I was-- I was paralyzed. The news I got was so overwhelmingly disturbing about a family member that I just I couldn't move for a while. We all face those. It's a phone call away.

I almost have-- I'm not exaggerating-- PTSD when I get phone calls from certain parts of the world, because I'm afraid it's somebody about a family member and It can happen, so that-- we have to be prepared for the trial we're preparing for, and so those calls are coming. I mean, it's just-- that's why Jesus said, you will have tribulation. You're going to be tabulated, so plan on it, prepare for it, and don't allow it to rock you. We want to get on Paul's page of saying, these things don't move me. I'm going to finish my course.

Fear, baggage, and then envy, envy is like being on a plane and there's parallel runways and you're on Southwest and you look over and there's the guy in these big jumbo jets with three floors and they're drinking champagne and having caviar and dancing around. You're going-- and you've got water and peanuts you're going, what is up with that? Runway envy, Paul said the race-- I have to finish my course.

In Hebrews he said, run with patience-- listen-- the race set before you. You got your own race. They got the wrong lane over there. They got their own runway. I don't know what's going on over there. I've got-- I'm in my plane, I'm in my lane. Run your race, the set before you and don't be distracted. Comparing yourself with others is not wise.

When I ran track I learned very quickly about what they called the staggered start and it seemed unfair at first. If you're on a half mile-- 880, roughly a half mile and you draw lane number one you're standing by the infield. Well, the guy on lane number 10, he may be 30 or 40 yards ahead of you and you're like, what is up with that? Why is he getting a head start? That's not fair and you realize, of course, they're running a longer oval. It's the identical race.

That's how we are. We look at somebody and then go wait a minute, that's not fair. Look what they've got. Look what God's given them. They don't have the trials I have. They've got better DNA or better bone structure or whatever it might be. You don't know where they started. You don't know what they're carrying. You don't know what's ahead of them. You don't know the kind of race. You might be on a flat track. They may have steeplechases and they may have minefields and whatnot to go through. You don't know. Stay in your lane. Stay in your own lane.

When they have a thoroughbred and you've run horses much, some horses can't race without blinders. They're distracted everything that's going up. When you put blinders on, they stay in their lane. When you're running a track race, you can't be worried about the cheerleaders and worried about the-- oh, how's the pole vault going while you're running. No, you've got to stay in your lane.

Charles Spurgeon had a mega-church in London, England, Metropolitan Tabernacle, megachurch. He preached to thousands, amazingly, and one time he's preaching to some pastors and leaders And one came up to him afterwards and says, Pastor Spurgeon, you've got thousands of people listen to you. You print your in the trial every Monday in the London Times and whatnot and I only have 80 people coming to my church. And Spurgeon looked back at them and said, well, I think on Judgment Day 80 souls will be enough for you to give an account for. His race was enough. That was a race God had given him.

Now, in the parable of the talents, one, five, and 10, those people in different lanes may have different talents. They have different skill sets, different callings than we do. Who are we to judge another man's servant? Pay attention to your own, and so-- and the talents also are not firm and fixed. Jesus said they can change. He'll move them around based on your faithfulness. If you're not performing, he'll take one talent and give it to a guy who is. So you can chan-- you can change your position. Run the race set before you.

That's what Paul says here. so you must avoid natural impulses. Christianity is a counter-intuitive life. It doesn't go with-- go with the grain. It's not natural to forgive. I'm much better at vengeance. I'm much better at rewinding and replaying and oh, what they said to me, oh, what I-- here's what I-- if I ever get a chance again, I've got it all laid out here. Oh, they're real-- I wish I'd said-- oh, next time I'm going to get them. That comes natural to me, probably not to you, but this happens to me. I have these little mind games I play with myself.

It's not natural to be generous, especially in the first world. It's more intelligent to be thrifty and secure and plan for your retirement. It's not natural to give to God's kingdom, not at all. It's not natural to leave our comforts like Paul does here. Most people would-- if he had a life coach, he'd say Paul, I'm thinking you shouldn't go to Jerusalem you see, and it's not natural to do-- we need to answer a high-- listen, answer or a higher calling than our natural instincts. It leads to victory. It leads to adventure, it leads to an abundant, fruitful life. As children of the King, we must be royal and we must be loyal in the midst of a wounded world, because we are a royal generation, we're a holy priests called out of a depraved and decadent society called to be lights shining in the midst of darkness. We're Royalty.

We also must be loyal to our calling. We can't be double minded. We can't be two souled. We have to be committed to the things of Christ without reservation. Hey, we're immersed in a culture hell bent on insulting God. It's true. Our society strive to offend-- strive to avoid, rather-- strives to avoid offending anyone and everyone, except God. They'll insult him all day long.

Freud said, "man is not made in the image of God. Man has created God in our image." How arrogant, how insulting, remarkable arrogance. You see, in 2017 we're dropping in a ageless, cosmic drama between the forces of good and evil. Now we have a pretty good idea of the back story and the future, but we don't know all the details here, but there's something going on very heavy between the forces of evil and the forces of God and insulting God is the hallmark of a civilization in decline.

Ima-- imagine, you're parents here. What's the most offensive thing your child could say to you? I disown you. You're not my mother. You're not my Father. I don't know where I came-- I don't know where I came from. I'm not in this family. How offensive to say that. It's precisely what we say when we say, we just evolved, we just made ourselves, time, chance, motion, energy we just-- nothing-- what if you went to a art gallery opening in Manhattan, some famous artist who's got the big painting there. He's standing by it. People are oohing and aahing and trying to figure it out and what not and you grab the mic and go, excuse me, he didn't paint this. It painted itself. It'd be, security, out.

That's what we're saying to the wor-- that's what evolution says to us, he didn't make this. The artist didn't make this. We just made ourselves. All the order, all the beauty, all the things that God has done, macro, micro, inner, outer space just happened, random occurrences of mutation. We are just a glorified-- organized orangutan. We're just glorified mutations. How insulting to the artist. He's like, really, really? Read Job 38 and 39 and see how God feels about that.

Slandering God, insulting him, this world system works over time to deny that Jesus is the Savior, the church is the hand of God, you are the art of God, and you are the crown of creation and he is the artist. He's the artist. Slandering God cannot, will not go on indefinitely. This is a temporary phase God is allowing. This is not going to go-- no this is not-- it's not long term. This is not permanent by any means.

Take this, the primary fact that God says about humans is what, male and female, I created them. I was in a restaurant in Portland a couple of weeks ago and I walked into the restroom area-- and this is the truth-- the sign isn't just a woman with a skirt, little icon, men, women. There's like four things on it. I had a man and woman and they had a man with half skirt, half pants, there was an alien going nanu nanu, and there was-- yeah, it was like-- I didn't even know what I'd find in there.

And people are saying now-- more and more people are actually saying that sex is not determined at birth. You can choose over the course of your life what your sex-- do these people have mirrors in their showers? I mean, seriously. That is an insult to God's plan, that male and female he created them, literally calling God a liar about the most concrete fact imaginable. This is looking God in the eye and saying, I don't want to be like you, I don't want to be with you. C.S. Lewis said, at the end of the day, two kinds of people, one that say your will be done and those to whom God says, OK, your will be done.

Ravi Zacharias says, sin is not just breaking an abstract moral law. It is the violation of a person, the person of God. It's personal and the world system is composed of three elements seeking to drag us back down. Here's the elements of gravity in your life. You'll recognize them. Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life, lust of the flesh, plundering that which is holy, the violation of the person of God Himself, lust of the eyes, greed, when you try to make material become spiritual and to fill spiritual need it can never accomplish.

Pride of life, I will be the master of my soul Invictus and our Christian righteousness riles up over the issues abortion and homosexuality and on and on it goes. Yeah, look at all those sinners insulting God. Then as I began to develop this thought over the summer, I realized that that wasn't how Jesus went. In fact, I came to realize the only time Jesus ever really got angry was in church.

He wasn't-- he wasn't angry with the sinners and tax collectors and the publicans and the prostitutes. He was angry in church. The Bible says he sat down and made the whip himself. When he went in the temple, it was premeditated. It wasn't a flash of spontaneous anger. He thought about, he went in there, and he flipped over the tables. He called out the high priest. He just-- that scene in Jesus of Nazareth, I've watched it 1,000 times. Whitened sephulcures, den of vipers. It's a great scene. I relate to that.

Then you're like, wait a minute, wow, what would he say to our church? What would he say to me as a Christian? Have I been merchandising the temple of God, and so that becomes uncomfortable. We need to move on. Because judgment begins at the house of the Lord and insulting of God, those issues that's what sinners do and I guess God is angry with sinners all day long, but he anticipates they're going to behave that way. It's our responsibility to illuminate them with the grace of God.

I was interviewing pastor Chuck Smith a few years ago for a documentary and I asked him, I said, Chuck, what was the most difficult part of your ministry? What really-- what hurt-- it was a personal question-- what hurt you the most and he got kind of wistful for a second and didn't really miss a beat and he quoted Psalm 55:13 and he said, it was not an enemy I could hide from. It was a friend who I had sweet fellowship with and went into the house of God with.

See, it's not our enemies that can hurt us. We're prepared. We have our defenses up for them. It's those in our inner circle. It's those we are close to. It'd those who we expect to get our back, but they choose to stab our backs. It's "Et tu, Brute," as Shakespeare said about Julius Caesar and Brutus and that principle is true. We've all been, unfortunately, betrayed by someone close to us, but I expanded that principle my relationship with God and I realized he has made himself vulnerable to his church.

It's not Satan that offends God. He's been through that. It's not-- it's not the world system. It's hi-- it's his people. It's those who are close to him, who commune with him, who he wants to have a relationship with. This is a real personal relationship. This is not a business or a moral or a legal obligation we have. We're dealing with a real person in the Holy Spirit, in God the Father, and in Jesus.

Perhaps you've heard the terms the church militant, which is a time before we're taken to heaven, the church triumphant, when we are in heaven, but there is a third and less attractive category. It's called the church disobedient, the church disobedient to the heavenly vision and we just can't afford to be guilty of that now can we? We need an obedient church, a church that insists upon fulfilling God's call.

The way Paul was able to do this-- this is supernatural what he did. If you think about it, if you are being warned, don't go to work tomorrow. Something awful is going to happen to you, but you feel you have to go to serve your purpose as a Christian and you're convinced in your heart, that's supernatural. It was because-- if you look at what he says here in verses 22 and 23, it's because he was fulfilling his course to testify of Jesus. He was determined to do that.

You need to have the same kind of clarity of vision. You need to have a certainty of purpose. The Bible says, make your calling sure. You ought to have a firm mission statement, what God has called you to do. He'll give it to you. I'm a personal witness of that, both by experience and observation and that's why Paul said, I will testify of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and Paul overrode the natural instincts of those bottom rungs of security and safety and survival and he put his life at risk.

Here's another factor that drove Paul and you need not turn there. We'll put it on the screen for you. He was compelled, the Bible says, compelled by the love of God. For the love of God compels us, because we thus judge that if one died for all, that all died and he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, and the word compelled, you might have constrained in the King James, it means to be motivated. This is what compels and constrains and motivates him is the love of God and the fact that he couldn't keep it to himself. He felt it'd be a spiritual crime to be selfish with God's love and God's grace, but we need a proper view of the love of God.

We can't be victims of a sentimental version that's so popular in the church, a sentimentalize version of what God's love is really like. Lord isn't up in heaven cutting out paper hearts and making up hallmark verses about how he loves the church. That's not love. Paul understood that the love of God was deeper, richer. In fact, the Ephesians he says that you might know the height, the depth, the breadth, the width of the love of God.

We need to understand God's love. It's not simple and sentimental. It has many dimensions. We need a God who can forgive all sins, all your sins, all your sins without exception. We need a God powerful enough to create everything out of nothing, out of "bara," but humble enough to take on human flesh, strong enough to overcome death, yet weak enough to walk on Earth. We need Jesus.

And hang on now, don't get up and leave, we need an angry God. Now, this flies in the face of a lot of current trends and whatnot about the love of God and whatnot, but as Tim Keller said, life does not make sense without an angry God as being part of his composite character. Otherwise, who is going to judge injustice? Does it lie with us then? We need an angry God who's responsible for righting wrongs.

The Bible's emphatic. Judgment is mine, saith the Lord, I will repay. That's why we're told in 1 Corinthians 4:5, therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, because when the Lord comes, he will bring everything to light, things that are hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes, the motives of the heart. Then each will receive his commendation from the Lord.

So we can relax, take a hands off approach, because yes, anger is not by any means his primary characteristic. He's merciful, he's just, he's slow to anger, but he-- but he does get angry, you see. He has a long fuse, but he has a fuse. He has a cup of wrath Revelation tells us. In fact, many people say, oh, that's the Old Testament God. There is no Old Testament God, same yesterday, today, and forever and if you think this anger's an Old Testament characteristic of God, you haven't read the Book of Revelation. You haven't read the book of Acts, how he dealt with some disobedience in the church early on. So anger is a part, only a part of his character.

We need a God willing also to be the ultimate missionary. I'll never forget the time I first realized that Jesus was the best missionary ever. I mean, the definition of a missionary is leaving one culture, going to another for the purposes of expressing God's love to them. Can you ima-- I mean, talk about a culture shock. I mean, if you've been on a mission trip and you-- we just got-- we just got back from India. You want an assault on your senses, wolf, and it's just attack of smell and sight and sound and honking and cows and this is amazing and it's a culture shock and there's no 7-elevens, but imagine the culture shock coming from heaven to Earth.

It's that Matrix moment. You remember the matrix one with, I think, Mr. Smith and he goes, I hate the smell of humans. I can imagine what Jesus had to-- he didn't hate, he loved and he came to this Earth, which is by any stretch contaminated and fallen and polluted and he came, because he loved. He was the ultimate missionary. We need a missionary God, but we need an obedient church. We need the church willing to be obedient to the call we have before us. We need more attention, I believe, to the great commission.

It's unacceptable that we have so many unreached people groups. Do you know the definition of unreached people group? It's interesting, I think a lot of people don't. Think, well, it's where people haven't been reached. No, it's people in a culture who do not have access to a Bible, a church, or a Christian, but if they did get saved in a dream or by some other means, they wouldn't have a fellowship or scriptures to go to or another Christian to consult with and there is an estimate-- there may be 6,500 unreached people groups in the world. This is unacceptable on our watch.

It's unacceptable that every language does not have the scriptures in their native tongue. It is possible technologically now and we have to devote ourself to this. We can't leave it to the next generation. This is our opportunity to make a mark, a legacy. This has never been possible before technologically with translation and all the various things that are available now. We have that opportunity. This should be a call-- clarion call to the great commission in our day. It should be something that excites us, galvanize us, unites us with purpose and a goal.

Most Christian missionaries are working among reached people groups. It's wonderful there doing that and I'm not criticizing it by any means, but it's estimated only 3% of all the 400,000 missionaries worldwide are working amongst unreached people groups. So that that too needs to change and be expanded. We need more than that. They should be working there, but as well we should have a full special forces going into more dangerous areas with the gospel. It's estimated that there's only one Christian worker for every quarter million people in an unreached people today. There you have it.

Well question, do you have a dream job? Do you have a dream vacation? Do you have a trip of a lifetime you've always wanted to take or maybe you're dreaming about your retirement or how you're going to handle this? Ever thought about what God's dream might be? God has dreams. God has plans. God has thoughts and emotions, just like we're-- we're made in his image we're a reflection of him. I suppose God's dream is that everybody might know about him.

The book of Ezekiel, I think it says 65 times, and they will know that I am the Lord. Hundreds of times in the whole new tests-- old testament he says, and they will know that I am the Lord. I think what drives God's dreams are the knowledge-- the goal of people knowing him and we have the opportunity to be in cooperation and in concert with him. There's talk about having your best life here, best life where, whatever. If this is our best life, we're in a lot of trouble, because my knees are killing me and I am-- I am encouraged to read Colossians 3, where it says, for you died talking to the Christian church. You died and your life is hidden. It's hidden with Christ in God.

When Christ, who is our life shall appear, then you also will appear with him in glory. Now, that's a dream. Now, that's Nirvana, that's paradise. I've looked for Paradise. I've gone to the islands, I've gone-- I've gone to the mountains and everywhere I went, there I was and that was the problem. It wasn't-- it wasn't the palm trees or the mountains or whatnot. I could be just as miserable in Maui as I could be in Minneapolis. Our life is hidden with Christ. When he appears, then we shall appear in glory. What a day that shall be, what a day.

Well, some fast facts about our motives as we bring this circle for a landing, three quick ones. First of all, gravity never gives up. Gravity-- remember gravity is pulling you down, didn't want you to take off and once you're up in the air, once you're soar-- if you are soaring with God, If you come up to the spiritual kingdom life, you can't turn off the engines, because if you do, that plane's going to fall right out of the sky, boom. Gravity never gives up in your life. Be vigilant, be sober. Your enemy goes about like a roaring lion seeking who he may devour and he uses the gravity of the Earth to draw you back into the sensual, the carnal, things that are counterproductive and not helpful to your soul. Gravity never gives up.

And stay in your lane and may I say kindly, and stay out of mine. I've been running track races back in the day, where guys would just be elbowing you and try to push you-- push you out of the way and stay in your own lane. Run the race set before you, because there is one and you want to finish it with joy. As John said, you want an abundant entry. You want to finish strong.

You want to be like Secretariat. He went out. Secretariat was the most amazing horse. He was lazy. They said he would he would lay around the barn and just eat oats all day long until it was t-- he didn't like to train, but then he'd get to the race. He'd get to the race and he'd take that bit in his mouth and boom and his la-- the last-- he won the Triple Crown. The last leg of the Triple Crown was the Belmont it was a mile and a half. He won it by 35 lengths going away. That's almost a quarter of the track. He was just-- he finished strong in his career. That's how we want to finish. We just want to do it by a nose, a photo finish, just kind of wandering into the last day of the rapture. We want to go in strong.

[LAUGHTER]

Stay in your lane to do that and give glory to God. Carry the glory, carry the glory. The opposite of insulting God is what glorifying him. Be the opposite, be the antithesis, be the absolute zag to their zig, and you want to give glory to God and all that you do. That's why we're here. When you do that, you find your purpose. You find the puzzle fits. You find this is what you've been looking for all along.

No matter where you're at tonight or what's threatening to rock your boat, it won't move you, because you can give glory to God in the pit, in the palace, or in the prison as Joseph did and once you take on that mentality, once you decide I'm going to serve God with all thy heart no matter where, no matter what, no matter who, you're unstoppable. You're a spiritual superhero. You don't get the tights or anything with that, but-- no Spandex. We don't want that, now do we?

Once you have that attitude, you're unbeatable at work. Once you say, I don't-- I don't care how rude they are, I'm going in with God's glory, you are absolutely undefeatable at that point. Adopt that attitude in everything you do and see your life change.

Well, here's some questions for takeout. What does move you? What moves you? You know Karen Carpenter-- Karen Carpenter died of bulimia or anorexia. And it was because somebody when she was in junior high body shamed her and it stuck with her for decades and she eventually starved herself to death. A rude social comment can motivate us in a very negative way and put you in a downward spiral.

Don't let those things move you. Learn to let go. There's one thing I do, Paul said, I forget the past. I put it behind me. I escort those thought out of my mind, taking them captive, pulling down the strong hold that seek dominion in my thought life and you have to do it consciously actively and consistently. Oh, I wish you were a one time thing. Just do it once. They come back with friends and you've got to continually do it and put up the guard and put up the gates, put a moat down and pull the drawbridge up. Is it going to be your dreams or God's dreams? Your life is hid with Christ.

Here's some closing calls to action. If you've heard the phrase let go and let God, that's awful advice. That just is a poor bumper sticker strategy, lousy theology. The Bible-- the Bible never says that. The Bible says we're in partnership in the family business. Who wants a partner like that, oh, you do the work God. I'm just letting go. It's all you. I heard a podcast this week. A lot of Christians are sitting around praying for tables and God gives trees. We want the-- we wanted the trees to fall-- the tables to fall out of heaven. God gave you a tree. Go make a table.

And here's something. You a lot-- I hear a lot of this as well, your miracle's just a moment away. You've come today, your miracle is just a moment away. Just grasp your miracle. It's today. Let me tell you something, you can be your own miracle. A vast majority of our problems are a function of self-inflicted wounds, lack of discipline, lack of devotion, lack of determination. You can be your own miracle, turning those things around, deciding to be a more devoted Christian, choosing to be a more disciplined follower of Jesus Christ, a more disciplined person in general.

You'll find miraculous things happening in your life and you're expecting God to do this spontaneous instantaneous, that's not generally how he works. He's in cooperation with us. Well, you don't do that for your children. You want them to grow and mature into their responsibilities. You shouldn't as a parent just give them everything they want. It shouldn't just show up in their room. They should take part in it. Be your own miracle.

The Bible tells us these things to do. They're calls to action, not let go. It talks about-- we saw very well in Corinthians the love of Christ constrains me, because we thus judge. That's a logical mathematical term. We see the same thing in Romans. We reckon, we must conclude. That means Paul took part in a process and came to a conclusion, and then took action. That's us being a part of the process spiritually. The Bible says to examine, to ask, to seek, to knock, to buffet. So you need devotion in your life. David encouraged himself in the Lord. You can do the same.

Discipline, Paul buffeted his body. Determination, Jesus set his face, as we said, like a flint to complete his mission and go to Jerusalem. One of the most powerful discipleship books I've ever read my life is called self confrontation. Years ago I went through it. Wow, it took every single imaginable issue you could have in your life and took it and just dissected it scripturally and it was-- it was unbelievable how every-- the Bible says, all things pertaining to life and Godliness are found in God's word.

It's so true and it took you to-- it didn't matter what it was, whether it was guilt or shame or temptation, every single possible imaginable problem it walks you through, gives you scriptures, and it just-- it makes you into just dog food. It's just like, you just want to just-- I'm not even a Christian, but boy did they ever-- did it ever change you. If you went through it, if you really memorized the things and did the homework and did the hard work. That's the discipline of it, yeah it beats you up, that's for sure, but it made you a better person, a more dis-- a disciple. What the root word? Discipline, a more disciplined follower of Jesus Christ, self confrontation.

Be ready to override the systems. Be ready to override when the natural tendencies of gravity are kicking in. You can get off the ground. You can soar. You can certainly flight-- have flight. I said at the very beginning that in solving a mystery the two key components to the puzzle, motive and opportunity. We've talked in depth about motive tonight, the proper motive of finishing the course, of testifying about Jesus. That's our prime directive, if I can quote Star Trek.

The other side is opportunity, opportunity, the reason to do something and the opportunity to do it. This is our time. This is our shining moment in the church to give God glory, to carry his grace to the world. it's short, it's brief, our shelf life is limited, we're standing on the shoulders of 2000 years of church history. If it doesn't get done now in this generation, we're not going to do it. Grasp it with all your might. Be zealous, be passionate, be purposeful, make the grace of God the cornerstone, the keystone of your life.

Two great questions in life really, do you want to know God and how well do you want to know him? It's really all there is to life. If you say yes to the first one, praise, take a deep sigh, a deep breath of relief, because you're there. If you accept the penalty Christ paid for you on the cross, that's the biggest, most powerful question you could ever answer. Once you've done that, praise the Lord, but then it doesn't end there. It'd be kind of cool if you just kind of zoomed up right then and there, just get raptured to heaven, the moment we have a lot of empty shoes here in the front of the church, but then how well do you want to know God? That's the question you're facing tonight. How well do you want to know him?

You see he is willing to be known and he's got all the depth you can ever go for, believe me, but you see, we pull back, we restrain, we hold back certain areas of our life, certain rooms in our life. Well, that's off limits. Oh, you can't-- you can't go in there Jesus. I don't want to go there with you. See, you have to answer that question on a regular basis. How deep do you want to go with him as a friend, to know hi-- to know his names, to know his tendencies.

In closing, the Bible says that at that day of Mt. Zion, that great day, just imagine it with me. Moses, the thunderings are going on, the lightnings are happening there at the mountain and the children of Israel are assembled below and they say, Moses, we don't want to go up there. You go for us and tell us what God says and the Bible says-- this is really heart wrenching-- it says that the children of Israel knew the Acts of God, but Moses knew the ways of God.

See, they knew the 10 plagues in Egypt, they knew the power of God, they knew the Red Sea, they saw the thunderings, they knew the Acts of God, they stood far off and saw the Acts of God, but Moses got up tight with God's heart and began to know his ways and so the question remains, how well do we want to know God? And I fear some people in the church can just stand back and ooh and aah over events and conferences and Crusades and this and that and go wow, look what God is doing there and you're observing what? The Acts of God. The Lord wants you to know his ways. He wa-- he wants you to be so close to him you feel his heartbeat.

I talked about being royal, and then being loyal. God wants to trust us. He wants us to be loyal. I think loyal is the most-- one of the most important human characteristics of a friendship. If you don't have loyalty in a friendship, what do you have? That's the basis of trust for everything in the most fundamental human relationship. God wants to trust us with his word, trust us with his will, trust us to know his ways and the beauty of it is that it can always start right now. It's never too late for you and I to change, no matter where we've been, what kind of baggage we're carrying around, we can jettison that backpack and go deeper and further and higher up with God.

As the book says, hinds feet in high places. That's where God wants to walk with you and talk with you and the beauty of it, that it can be offered to you tonight. You can make that next step devotionally in your life with Christ tonight. Things can begin to change. You can change your devotional life, change your disciplines in your life, change the determination you have to fulfill your race. That's what you're called to do.

Read a book this week by Brother Andrew, and it's called The Exodus Mandate. And all he said is that so often when God calls a person, he says one word, go. He said, Abraham, go. He said Moses, get out of Egypt. He said Jonah, go to Nineveh, and Jesus said to all of us, go into all the world and preach the gospel. This my friends, is the great commission.

Let's pray together. Lord, we're so grateful for your word. It's so clear, so clarifying, so cleansing. It is so powerful, it is so graceful, it is so practical, it is so truthful. I just pray for this body here tonight, the potential we have as a unit to serve you, to love you, to expand your kingdom, help it to be so. I pray that we would not be rocked, we would not be moved by the gravity of this world, the things that come in, the tribulations that come Lord, we would stay the course, we'd be in our lane, we'd run the race with patience and with zeal and finish strong. To your glory. In Jesus' name, amen.

What binds us together is devotion to worshipping our Heavenly Father, dedication to studying his word, and determination to proclaim our eternal hope in Jesus Christ.

For more teachings from Calvary Albuquerque and Skip Heitzig, visit calvaryabq.org.

Message SummaryEver wonder why or how Jesus prays for us and that if we know He does, how should we really be acting and thinking? Our guest speaker Pastor Bill brings out the vital points of prayer teaching how Jesus prays for us. The Apostles and Disciples hear the beautiful words of their master as Jesus speaks to His Father about us. As we hear and read the prayers of Jesus we must never forget that Jesus is full of thoughts of us and He will be praying for those who love him. So, do you want to know what Jesus prays for you?

Message SummaryPaul was a man who went to the people; he did not wait for the people to come to him. Are you waiting for those to hear you preach or teach or are you willing to go out and bring the gospel to men? Senior Pastor Tom Stipe of Crossroads Church in Denver brings us a vital message from the book of ACTS concerning our approach in preaching the gospel and uses Paul as the example of how a single man brought the gospel to folks in his sphere of influence. Pastor Tom challenges us to not be afraid or have fear when we do preach the gospel. Are you willing to step out and be confronted by the public, friends or loved ones? God did through Jesus, so why not you?

Message SummaryDo you believe every thing you see and hear? Do you know how to discern what is true and what is false? Would you recognize a false prophet? Senior Pastor Paul Scozzafava, from Calvary Santa Fe, gives us three import things to understand in our daily walk of our Christian life that will help us discern what is good and right and who it is that is not. Be sure of who you are and who you belong to, for God, through Jesus, will have it no other way. So, do you know?

Message SummaryWho among us has not failed? Who among us can truthfully say I can make it on my own? The Israelites failed and walked in disobedience, but God used and allowed circumstances to bring His people back to a place of worship. Pastor Greg Opean presents a stimulating message of returning to the God of our lives as we read in the Book of Ezra how the people met and rebuilt the alter of God to renew their worship with God.

Message SummaryHow shall we live if we are so loved? How should we act if we are given so much? And how is it that we still cling to things that will be burned up? Peter advises believers on how to live in the face of scoffers and mockers. He urges the believer to live in a way that is unmovable in perilous times. Pastor Dave Row delivers a stimulating message from 2 Peter on how we are to live knowing that the Lord is coming. If we know this then, Beloved How Shall We Live? The answer is holy, wholly, and ready at any moment for the coming of our Lord!

Message SummaryDo you drink from the communion cup to merely quench your physical thirst or do you drink it in communion with the body of Christ and with the Lord as your focus? Paul writes to the Corinthian church stressing the importance of putting aside selfishness and coming together for the right reasons. Pastor Dave Row brings thought provoking insights into the real communion of the body of Christ and why we join to celebrate the remembrance of Jesus. So, do you simply enjoy the meal on the table or do you enjoy the One who put the food on the table?

Message SummaryHave you ever said something concerning God and knew that it was not from you? Or have you ever done something for someone that was good and you knew it was way out of your character? Well you're not alone. Paul did many things concerning the work of God and knew that God gave him the Divine Breathings of the Holy Spirit to do them. Guest speaker Pastor Ray Bentley provides thought provoking words that will stir you to evaluate your prayer life and your walk in Christ before others.

Message SummaryIs it true that All you need is love? The rock group The Beatles seemed to think so, Paul the Apostle thought so, and you should also think so. Love is what God is all about, for love is the very nature of God. Pastor Dave Row speaks to us about love, what it is, and what it is not. Pastor Dave shares from the book of I Corinthians, Chapter 13, breaking down the elements of love. If there is one thing you can count on concerning love, it is that Love Never Fails. Pastor Row presents three aspects of love that we should know, including The Significance of Love, The Substance of Love, and The Superiority of Love.

Message SummaryGod tells us to be still and to know that He is God. Do you rest in Him when the storms come, or do you run to the confines of your mind to figure things out? David knew God and the peace and rest that can be found in Him. Pastor Don McClure reminds us of a different world where we should dwell as we grow in our understanding of the things God would have us to do in times of trouble. Psalm 46:10 tells us to be still and know that He is God. Are you too busy to know God on a deep level or do you dwell in the throne room of your Lord and receive His strength for your refuge? God has a plan for you and it can only be for good. Step into His world and know Him.

Message SummaryHas God broken you? Have you remained humble? What does it take to live in a place of brokenness so you will be readily used by God? In Psalm 51, David speaks about how God will use a contrite and broken heart. Pastor Chip Lusko brings insight into this Psalm as we hear how brokenness forms a beauty that God delights in. Are you willing to be broken or will you remain aloof and hope God will use you? Think about it.

Message SummaryHave you longed to be used by God? What does it take to be used of God? Nehemiah prepared his heart with prayer and fasting, David prepared his heart during a long night with the sheep. Both Nehemiah and David knew the God of their fathers. Pastor Robert Furrow provides clarity from the book of Nehemiah with insights on "Having a Usable Heart Before God." If you desire to be used by God you will need to have a Usable Heart Before God.

Message SummaryDo we have blessings from God? If so, do we know what they are? In the book of Matthew we find a list of blessings that Jesus proclaims can be ours. Pastors Nelson Walker, Dale Coffing, Neil Ortiz, and Alan Brooks joined together to bring us insight into the Beatitudes. We should be encouraged to personalize these blessings for digestion into our soul.

Message SummaryWhat does it mean to be filled with the Holy Spirit? How do you know if you are filled with the Holy Spirit? The book of Ephesians helps us understand what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Pastor John Miller conveys four key points on how to be filled with the Holy Spirit and the consequence of this filling of the Spirit.

Message SummaryNews media resources count on names such as "Eyewitness News" or "Action News" because these names say something about their mission. Have you been faithful to repeat what you have seen or heard about Jesus Christ? The Book of 1 John gives us keen insight into the heart of John as Pastor Dave Rowe elaborates on the writings of John from the perspective of joy. Pastor Dave challenges us to seek this joy by telling others about Jesus. So, as you share about Jesus, notice that your joy becomes complete.

Message SummaryWhat foods do you enjoy and how much do you enjoy them? Jesus had food that the disciples thought they understood, but clearly they where thinking on an earthly plain. Senior Pastor Dave Row takes us to a place that will challenge our hearts and minds as we learn just what The Perfect Diet is for us. Pastor Dave gives us several things to consider as we look at the perspective of the Apostles versus the perspective of Jesus. So, are you eating junk or do you have a heavenly diet?

Message SummaryCan light and darkness join as one? Can God take away our darkness and bring us into the glorious light? The Apostle John writes in 1 John that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. This statement is the very truth that gives us hope for our God is holy and full of light. Many may offer light, but only One is the true light and that One is the Son of God, Jesus Christ. So, what is your light?

Message SummaryDoes God really speak to us? If so, how does this happen? If it does happened, how do I know what He's saying? These are good questions and a young King David learned the answers to these questions in God's outdoor classroom. God speaks to us in a still small voice and gives us His word to confirm His love for us. You can know that God does speak to us today by becoming His child and reading His word. In these ways we can see how God leads us from glory to glory. So, how about you? Are you tuning in on the right frequency or are you still dialing through the world of stations?

Message SummarySome questions are hard to ask sometimes, especially if those questions are directed at us. Questions like "Do we really love God?", "How do we know we love God?", and "What does it look like to love God?" can really be tough. Many good men strive to do what is right, but unless we know God and we follow His commandments we do not know the truth. John writes words aimed at helping us understand the free will choice we have to make daily to love God. So, if you really want to understand what it means to have a deep love for God or to know where you stand, just listen to what John has to say to us through the Holy Spirit.

Message SummaryWhat does it take to keep a promise or vow? Do we really understand the commitment of keeping our words? In the book of Judges Samson clearly demonstrates that he neither understood nor took seriously the instructions of his parents concerning the keeping of the Nazirite vow. We will see that compromise leads to more compromise and ultimately to our demise. But God is gracious and if we repent and turn from our evil ways God will, as He did with Samson, grant us grace. So, when you sign that paper, say those words, or make that promise…, be sure you understand what it's all about.

Message SummaryAs a believer, are you ready to choose between the passing pleasures of sin or staying the course even if you are called to suffer? The way you live your life is a testimony to the internal nature of your convictions. Any way that leads away from the Lord leads to destruction. This world and its destructive lusts will come to an end, but one who is continually doing the will of God has a front row seat to eternity. Where is your seat located, in the aisle of destruction or on the front row or eternity?

Message SummaryJesus Christ is risen! It's not about a fancy holiday outfit, candy, or anything other than the fact that He is risen. Are you passionate about your walk with Him? Are you committed to do the things He calls you to? Considering the love He has for each one of us, the sacrifice He made for each one of us, and the depth of knowledge He has about each one of us, can we offer anything less than a passionate commitment to everything He has for us? Do you really want anything less than His best in for life? Join us for a very special Easter message by guest teacher Ryan Dobson, entitled The Power of Passion.

Message SummaryAre you willing to stand up for the cross of Christ, or are you content to hear only what you want to believe? How do you know who the real believers are, and if you do recognize them are you willing to follow? John writes in 1 John 2:18-29 about how to recognize the real Christian and how to spot the false one. The marks of a true believer are clear to all as John speaks of the telltale attributes of the Holy Spirit in the believer's life. So, are you among the true believes or are you sitting in with those who really oppose the Gospel of Christ?

Message SummaryWhat power do you know of that can raise a person from the dead and then give a promise to do the same for you? We all were dead in our sins, but through the resurrection of Christ we now have the re-birth needed to live. Paul writes to the Philippians about the Power of a Resurrected Life as part of the knowledge we need to live a life before those who do not know Jesus. Paul showed us, as Christ did, that to live is to die and to die is to live only through a resurrected life. There is power we can know only if we know the One who bore our sins and gave us eternal life. If you want to know that power, the Apostle Paul has some words for you.

Message SummaryHow would you describe the state of your family life? Is it close, comforting, and encouraging? Or is it not quite what you had always hoped for? As Christians, we are part of God's family, the family of all families. We are bathed in His love and have access to all of the benefits of being His children. But if we abandon His invitation to join this family we automatically become members of the family of sin and there simply are no benefits associated with this family. So think about which family portrait you would like to be part of – God's Family Portrait or Sin's Family Portrait.

Message SummaryDo you ever ask yourself when all of your hard work will finally pay off? If you are a Christian, you are on a deferred payment plan. You might be rewarded here on earth, but the real benefits are gained in heaven. Who and what are you working for today? If it's self and earthly gain, you're missing out on the best that the Lord has for you.

Message SummaryChristians are commanded to love, but who are we commanded to love? How do we express that love? Why should we love? As we delve deeper into what it means to be a child of God, we will learn about four different types of love, how this love is to be applied, and the reasons for loving one another. So perform a quick self-test on your heart and prepare to be challenged and encouraged as you learn more about applying godly love in your life.

Message SummaryWe all face challenges, difficulties, and heartbreak in this life, but not all of us turn to the same place for comfort and direction. When faced with crisis, where do you turn? Do you become disappointed with the Lord and fall away, or do you run to Him and seek His shelter? Join Pastor David Rosales as he provides Biblical insight on how we should answer the age old question Will You Go Away?

Message SummaryHow concerned are you with what is true and what is not? Are you willing to jump on the latest craze, trend, or system of beliefs? Have you stopped to consider the source? We all serve somebody and their particular ideas and events. The driving force behind all that we think and do should be Jesus Himself through His Holy Spirit. Join Pastor Dave Row as he gives us Biblical reasons and methods for testing every spirit and avoiding the voice of the enemy.

Message SummaryWhere does genuine faith come from? Is it inherited or does it come from being loved and nurtured? Or could it be a combination of these two factors? What does genuine faith look like? Is there a process or method involved in attaining it? Join Pastor Dave Row as he teaches about the true source of genuine faith and the role we should take in helping others along their journey in developing their faith.

Message SummaryAs we celebrate the work of our Lord and Savior during this Communion service, think back about 2,000 years ago to the very first Lord's Supper. We celebrate today in much the same manner as they did so very long ago. Join us as we delve deeper into this celebration that all believers are commanded to partake of on a regular basis. Come with us as we look Communion from three different perspectives; the past, the present, and the future.

Message SummaryWe have all gone through times when we wondered if we could make it even one more hour. We have all been on the verge of a breakdown, but where did you seek refuge? Did you withdraw and suffer alone? Did you turn to a friend or loved one for help? Join Pastor Al Pittman as he sheds light on how we can experience a breakthrough in the midst of a breakdown by relying on our faith in the Lord, being broken before Him, and having intimate times prayer and fellowship with Him. Through His presence in the life of every believer, He has already given us all that we need to successfully transition from breakdown to breakthrough.

Message SummaryWhen others describe you, what do they say? Are you described as a great business person, a scholar, or an athlete? While these descriptions are not bad, they are lacking the key ingredient that marks us as believers. This key ingredient is love. Join Pastor Dave Row as he delves deeper into The Love of God, what it means to the believer, and how it can forever change a lost and hurting world.

Message SummaryAll of us have read books and some of those books stirred our hearts but did you know that the Bible can stir your heart to know and understand the deep truths of God? In II Timothy we read that all scripture is given by the inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, correction, reproof and instruction in righteousness. Why? So that we may know how to dispel false doctrine and equip others to stand in the faith they have been given. What do you think about the word of God and do you believe that all scripture is given by the inspiration of God? Timothy writes to us by the Holy Spirit that we can know and be assured that the word of God is the Word of God…, and that's a fact you can believe and know, so get into the word and live.

Message SummaryWhat are you afraid of and why? Did you know that God says to fear not? Did you know that your past and future is in God by Jesus Christ and you have not need to fear? Perfect love casts out fear as the Apostle John writes in First John Chapter 4, if a man fears he is not made perfect in love. All of God's love is for us and in us, so if you really want to know God's love you must abide in Him and He will abide in you. Yes, God is for you and loves you completely, but, will you let Him?

Message SummaryDo you know of anyone who would die for you? Do you know anyone that would trade their life of liberty for your life of sin and death? There is one who did all that for you, Jesus Christ is that one. The book of Romans, chapter 5 discusses the love of God and how God chooses to demonstrate it. God looked down from this Holy thrown and saw you and loved you and wanted you and sent His Son to die, all so He could have you for His own…, but you must choose that…, will you? Think about it.

Message SummaryHow do you view the inevitable disappointments that you encounter in your life? Do they weigh you down and affect your walk with the Lord? Do they cause you to question how or even if He cares for you? In tonight's lesson we will look at disappointment very carefully. We will examine its nature, learn how we can trust God in the face of it, and look at some of the ways He uses it to further His work through us. Join Pastor Neil Ortiz as he sheds new light on a topic that affects us all.

Message SummaryWhy would anyone be interested in finding where a city such as Sodom was once located? Is it a matter of simple curiosity, or is there a deeper, more important reason to pursue such an endeavor? Join Dr. Steven Collins as he shares valuable information about what he and his associates have found and why it is important to all believers.

Message SummaryNothing tastes better on a hot day than a tall, cold glass of water. It refreshes the body like nothing else can. When life starts to get you down or a little hot under the collar, where do you go for refreshment? Join Pastor Bill Goodrich as he shares insight and information on how we need to pray to bring about a spiritual revival that will refresh our souls more completely than that cool water can refresh our bodies.

Message SummaryWe all have all experienced times when things just seems to go wrong. It may be a conflict with someone close to us, an illness, or any one of a number of issues or events that seem bent on bringing us down. How do you respond in these times? As believers, we do not need to live a defeated life. Though we may face persecution, physical pain, or sorrow, there is joy that overpowers it all because God has put His Spirit within us. Join Pastor Dave Row as he continues in this teaching series through the book of 1 John and learn more about possessing a potent faith that is available to all believers.

Message SummaryHow would you define your role in the church? Are you involved with the youth? Do you greet people as they come through the doors? Do you pray for others in the body? What ever your role, realize that you are an integral part of the ministry. It takes an entire body of believers acting upon what God has called them to do to make a church. Join Pastor Alan Brooks as he sheds more light on who we, as members of the body of Christ, really are in Him.

Message SummaryEvery day of our life is full of opportunity. Some of these opportunities are acted upon, while some are missed. More importantly, some of these opportunities have the possibility of changing the eternal destination of someone close to you. As you begin each day, remember the responsibility you have to seize every opportunity God gives you to make a real difference in someone's life. If you fail to do so, the consequences just might be eternal for a friend or loved one. Join Pastor Raul Ries as he encourages us rise up out of our complacency and make a real impact on the lives of those around us.

Message SummaryThere are times when life seems full of disappointment, strife, hurt, and severed or damaged relationships. Each person has a choice to make when faced with these types of disappointments, to follow a path of vengeance or to opt for the path of reconciliation. As believers who choose the path of reconciliation, realize that we are not alone as we travel this path. We have the hand of God helping and directing us along the way. Join Pastor Chip Lusko as he delves deeper into this topic of reconciliation and what it truly means to be an ambassador for the King.

Message SummaryEver wonder how much God thinks about you? Do you know the thoughts God has about you and what God wants for you? King David wrote many Psalms and in these Psalms, David expressed the times of His life so we may know the heart of a man that God calls, "a man after God's own heart". As we wait for the Lord and cry out to Him and trust Him, God will bring you up and out of anything you may be facing, so, take heart and be of good cheer for your God is on the move!!!!..., think about it.

Message SummaryHave you overcome the world? Do you know how to overcome the world? Is your family strong enough to overcome the world? The Apostle John writes in First John Chapter 5 concerning how we can know that we have overcome the world. But what is it to really do just that? John says, it is our faith in God and in His Son Jesus Christ that overcomes the world. The question here is; do you know who God is and His Son or do you just know of Him? Your family will get you through this life but only Jesus can bring you beyond this world to His Father and all of it by His love, do you want this love or will you turn and trust in your worldly family? Think about it.

Message SummaryHow do you see you're self in the eyes of God, as little children or as one needing to become one? We all have a need to be loved and taken care of and Jesus is able to do that, Jesus told a story that is repeated in three of the four gospels about taking a child in His arms. This story is asking you to be that child and to see others as little children who are seeking a father, the Father. So, are you being taught by the Holy Spirit as a little child or are you too old for that…, think about it.

Message SummaryDo you believe that God hears you or do you just believe God does not want to hear from you? If God hears you do you really believe God will grant what you ask of Him? The Apostle John in 1 John 5, writes to us concerning having confidence that if we ask anything in His name (Jesus) He will hear us. Is that really true? John knows it to be and so can you. God wants you to know that He is available to you anytime and for any reason…, you just have to come and ask. So, as you think about this ask God to show you and you will see that God is able to do all things for you according to His will, but it all start with meeting, asking and believing in Him.

Message SummarySin affects us all and without the knowledge of God's word we would not know sin and be lost. John writes in chapter 5 concerning sin and how we are to understand sin and its nature. Sin all started with pride in Lucifer and in the disobeying of Eve and Adam but all sin can be dealt with by one simple act…, repentance. Are you in a state of sin or are you in the loving peace and care of Christ? God calls us to be set free from sin and live free. So will you accept God's gift or grace or will you hold onto what you think is right?

Message SummaryAbiding in Christ will keep you from the wicked one for God wants us to understand Him and know that we are born of God. Are you born of God? Can you really say, I am His and He is mine? This is the confidence we have in Christ, that Jesus died and rose again by the will of God and in this we who believe are born of God. John writes to us in 1 John 5 concerning who we are in Christ and how we can and do know that we belong to God. So, have you learned that your faith overcomes the world or are you still looking to the things of the world and its wisdom to help you overcome? Know this, God is yours, you only need to ask and receive Christ, will you?

Message SummaryHow often do you spread the news of someone you know who is walking in Christ that is having a great impact on others to the strengthening of the faith of many? In Third John the elder Apostle gives us two great examples of men who have kept the faith in unselfishness, impacting many to Christ. But John also exposes a man who thinks of himself first instead of bringing Christ to light. These people are selfish, prideful and without wisdom, from these put yourself at distance. Do you spread the faith in humility putting the light on Christ or are you keeping the praise for yourself putting light on you?

Message SummaryTerry taught a very spiritual rich message about what the LORD has taught him during him time as a pastor in El Paso, Texas. Particularly he explains some of the very important lessons he's learn while their church was in a tent for four years. He used these verses during his message: Philippians 4:11-13; 1 Timothy 6:6; Deuteronomy 6:10-12; 1 Peter 2:11; 1 Peter 5:5-6; Psalm 138:8

Message SummaryWho is Jesus? Lee Strobel tackles this question in his message, "The Case for the Real Jesus," looking at the biblical and historical evidence of who Jesus really was and His divine purpose on earth. In a time where the identity and message of Jesus is under constant attack, this message focuses on rediscovering the truth of our Savior.

Message SummaryPastor Raul Ries of Calvary Chapel Golden Springs joined us as our guest speaker at all four services on March 7-8. We turned our Bibles to 2 Peter 3:9 to read the scripture and hear from Pastor Raul in a message titled, "Why do we have to repent?"

Message SummaryHave you experienced the Lord's work through you in unexpected ways? The world around us is hurting and hungry. In this message, we'll explore what it means to be salt and light to those around us and learn to be ready for "The Unexpected Adventure."

Message SummaryHave you ever felt alone, totally abandoned? While we may feel that way from time to time, we have never truly been forsaken, because Jesus endured it on our behalf. Alone on the cross, forsaken by the Father, suffering at the hands of sinners, Jesus sacrificed his life for those who tormented Him. How will you respond to Him?

Message SummaryHow important is a Biblical worldview? Is it really necessary for Christians to consider life in light of the Bible? In this message from Sean McDowell, we'll examine the troublesome trend of evangelical teens exiting the church and the importance of loving the Lord with all your mind.

Message SummaryWhat assurance do you have that you'll go to heaven? What is required to receive eternal life? Church membership and religious symbols can offer a false sense of spiritual security, but in this message from guest speaker Franklin Graham we'll hear a clear and concise explanation of God's plan of salvation. We'll hear about Nicodemus and his conversation with Jesus under the cover of night and we'll learn about God's love and forgiveness for all who are willing to come.

Message SummaryFalse thoughts, false worship, and false gods - in a vision from God, Ezekiel was brought face to face with the flagrant idolatry plaguing ancient Israel. It had crept into the temple of God and the hearts of His people, and their spiritual condition demanded radical action. Join us as we uncover the roots of idolatry and discover that its long shadow reaches into the church and even our own hearts.

Message SummaryIn an era of skepticism and doubt, the resurrection comes under continual attack, but it's not an issue exclusive to our culture and time. From the beginnings of the faith, the resurrection has been challenged, although it is one of the best documented events in history. Can the dead come back to life? Let's explore the evidence, and the consequences of this essential doctrine or our faith.

Message SummaryJesus spoke in parables to reveal truth to believers; He revealed heavenly truth through the earthly stories. In this message, we examine Jesus' Parable of the Soils, where Jesus addresses how the good news is rejected or received. Let's look at the telling, the reason, the explanation and the power of the story, and be challenged to have well-watered, weed-free hearts, that are ready to receive the implanted Word.

Message SummaryWhere can you find a lasting satisfaction? How can you overcome your inadequacies? How can you extend hope to the hopeless? Learn God's plan and purpose for your life, and have an eternal impact on those around you when you walk in obedience to His calling. Let's take a look at the faith and failings of Gideon, and learn to see as God sees.

Message SummaryWhy is biblical geography important? Is the Genesis narrative of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah accurate? Join us for an update from Dr. Stephen Collins about his recent excavations at Tall el-Hammam in Jordan, and why he believes he has located the biblical Sodom.

Message SummaryWhat do you do with the problem of pain? Why does God allow evil to exist, and why do bad things happen to good people? Let's take a look at the sovereign will and the permissive will of God and gain a greater understanding of God's providence and the promise of His working all things to work together for good in the lives of His children.

Message SummaryDifficult circumstances can result in bitterness. In this message from Lamentations 3, Dr. Ross Rhoads brings us a reality check. We'll consider the heart of God in allowing us to suffer consequences, and take into account the goodness revealed in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Message SummaryThe idea of sharing the truth about sin, and even the hope of the gospel, is paralyzing to some. We are all responsible for evangelism, so let's consider our high calling and the cost others may pay if fear hinders us from fulfilling the Great Commission. What are we afraid of?

Message SummaryEver since the Garden of Eden, people have struggled with temptation. Perhaps we are tempted to lie, or gossip, or maybe it's physical lust that draws us away. If God isn't to blame, who or what is? Join us as we examine how to face temptation: its source, its course, and how to stand firm when temptation comes our way.

Message SummaryWhat’s wrong with the world? Newscasts are replete with stories of greed, violence, and deceit. While the world has no valid explanation for the evil lurking behind every corner, God’s Word is clear: the cause of pain and suffering is sin. In this study we will look at what the Bible says about sin–its cause, its consequence and its cure.

Message SummaryHave you ever thought of running away from God? Though we may not pack our bags and try to physically flee, many of us try to hide ourselves from His presence. Let's take a look at the Jonah and learn how God's prepares the prophet and consider His hand of discipline in our own lives.

Message SummaryThrough dark times and in life's shadows, the Lord is with His people. As we examine one of the best-known passages in the Old Testament, we'll learn about the tender care of the Lord in every circumstance. Whether we face financial hardships, physical difficulties, or emotional valleys, we are spiritually secure in the hands of the Good Shepherd.

Message SummaryWhen the unrighteous prosper, it can be discouraging. Why does it seem like the bad guy next door never has any problems? When we struggle with self-pity, we may find that we have taken our eyes off the Lord and have set them squarely on our circumstances. Let's reconsider the fate of the ungodly as we regain an eternal perspective of a life apart from God.

Message SummaryJoin us as we take a fresh look God the Father. Through the lens of Jesus, we'll focus our attention on the mountain-top revelation to Moses of God's very nature: compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in mercy and faithfulness, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin.

Message SummaryWhat are we as believers to do about the plight of the estimated 160 million child laborers and street children in the world? What does the Lord want us do about these starving and seemingly hopeless kids? KP Yohannan compels us to put our faith into action as we consider our text from Matthew 18.

Message SummaryReplacement theology is a frightening trend in the church. The belief that the Lord has written off the Jewish nation and that the church will be the sole recipient of God's promises is bad theology; and bad theology results in bad consequences. Let's look at the Bible and find out whether the Jews are God's chosen people and why it matters.

Message SummaryTurmoil in the Middle East including land disputes and threats from radical Islam are continually plastered across news headlines. While we don't expect radical Muslims to accept the Jewish presence in Israel, a growing number of Christians are questioning whether the Jews have a right to the Promised Land. Join us as we explore the Bible to determine whether Israel occupies land that does not belong to them. Does the Bible justify the Jewish presence in Israel?

Message SummaryThere's an intense battle raging. Throughout history, enemies have sought to annihilate the Jews and the threat of radical Islam is growing. In this message from Joel Rosenberg, we'll consider Satan's plot to destroy Israel and consider why the world hates the Jewish people.

Message SummaryGod has indeed chosen the Jewish people and given them the land of Israel, but how does He view Israel's neighbors? As we dive into God's Word, we'll see He has not given Israel license to oppress their neighbors or to create injustice. Let's listen closely to this important reminder of God's love for the world and His promises for the children of Ishmael.

Message SummaryAs Joel wraps up the series Critical Issues Facing the Epicenter, we'll explore why Israel and the Jewish people should be important to all believers. With the return of Jesus Christ approaching, we must consider our part in blessing Israel and her neighbors and Joel will encourage us to learn, pray, give, and go. Joel also addresses questions from the congregation about current events, prophecy, and the sound interpretation of God’s Word.

Message SummaryAre you missing something in life? Are you searching for something, unsure of exactly what it is? As he brings us this message from Luke 19, Franklin Graham challenges us to consider our standing before God: Are your sins forgiven? Listen and learn that though we are all guilty of sin, we can receive forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ.

Message SummaryIf you could do anything, what would it be? Let's consider whether our dreams are man-made or God-given as we look at the example of Moses. Faith without works is dead—how can we use our gifts fully for the glory of God?

Message SummaryAre you a happy person? That's the issue addressed in this message from Pastor AJ Villegas. We'll examine our overall outlook, and consider the difference in worldly satisfaction and true contentment. We'll learn that a proper perspective of the Lord, rather than comfortable circumstances, are the source of genuine happiness.

Message SummaryHow can we have more effective prayer lives? Let's take a brief look at "The Lord's Prayer" and consider how God Himself has instructed us to pray. We'll gain a greater understanding of how God honors our submission, our commission, and the remission or our sins.

Message SummaryThe Bible helps us make sense of archaeology—His inerrant Word sheds light recent discoveries. As we consider this message from Dr. Holden, we'll discover that validity of the biblical history confirms and clarifies God's Word and further demonstrates God's love for man.

Message SummaryEvery day, millions of people around the world search the internet for God. Learn how Global Media Outreach and online missionaries are using technology to reach the world with the gospel.

Message SummaryIn this study from Joshua 2, Levi Lusko discusses God’s plan of redemption as demonstrated through the life of Rahab. We’ll learn that God’s goes before us, wants to save those around us, and is not afraid of what’s behind us.

Message SummaryIf you want to see God do the impossible, you have to believe He can, then take the steps to make it happen. Those steps may seem scary and crazy at first and people around you may not understand, but God can do things that we can't even dream up. Fight the battle knowing that it’s already won!

Message SummaryDr. Ron Rhodes is president of Reasoning from the Scriptures Ministries. He regularly addresses current issues in the national media, and has been a keynote speaker at conferences across the United States. Dr. Rhodes teaches cult apologetics at Veritas Evangelical Seminary and other seminaries around the country.
Jump To: Dr. Ron Rhodes Testimony | Saturday | Sunday 8:00 | Sunday 9:30 | Sunday 11:15

Message SummaryLike many of us, Manasseh was raised in a good home where he was taught who God is, and yet he chose to walk away. He rebelled against his father and the Lord, leading Israel into idolatry and immorality. But Manasseh repented from his evil ways, turned back to the Lord, and received God's forgiveness. In this inspiring message, Franklin Graham reminds us that no one is outside of God's reach.

Message SummaryAre your prayers rooted in God's promises? That's the issue addressed in this study from 1 Kings 18:41-46. As we consider the prayer and faith of the prophet Elijah, we'll glean important principles about bringing our requests to the Father and receiving what God has promised.

Message SummaryWhat is your mission in life? As we study this passage from James, we gain a clearer understanding of God's plans for each of us - inwardly and outwardly. Let's consider who we are living to please and the rewards of a life lived faithfully.

Message SummaryWhile Jesus is certainly the most extraordinary and influential figure in history, opinions about His identity vary widely. Culture and experience can influence our thoughts about who He is and why He came—but what does the Bible tell us about who He is? What will you do with the real Jesus?

Message SummaryDrawing from 1 Peter 3:15 and 2 Peter 1:16, Dr. Collins explains our calling as believers to offer factual evidence in favor of our faith and reminds us that the Bible is a book of history, as well as a record of spiritual truth. He also shares unpublished, unprecedented archaeological discoveries including the gateway of Sodom along the southern wall of the lower city.

Message SummaryWe often have a pretty good grasp of how fleeting time can be. In this day and age of waxing philosophical, moral relativism, and a church that gives in to the pressures of the world, we need a firm grasp of how and why we must redeem the time. As we consider Ephesians 5:15-17, we'll be reminded that time is short—we need to be wise, walk in the light, use our minds, and understand that God has a plan for our lives.

Message Summary There are different ways of knowing. We can know "that," and have an understanding of something; we can know "how," and experience something; and we can know "personally," and have a relationship with someone. In John 17:1-5 we will dissect a portion of Jesus' prayer to His Father, before being handed over to crucifixion. In this passage we learn that Jesus' suffering and death would reveal the glory, or character of His Father, and that through His death and resurrection, we can know God. Knowing God is intimate and personal, and by studying what it is to know God, we'll understand that eternal life comes from being in relationship with the only true God.

Message SummaryLearn the facts on Muslim population growth around the globe and grapple with how to effectively reach the Islamic population. Take cues from Matthew 22 and learn how to love non-Christians as neighbors who need to hear the good news.

Message SummaryPeter wrote to Christians in the Roman Empire who experienced persecution and were about to suffer greater persecution! How were they to respond to these trials and troubles? In our text, we see they were to love and serve one another, and use the gifts that God gave them—and so are we!

Message SummaryEpicenter is a term that describes Jerusalem as the center of the nations based on Ezekiel 5:5. While there is darkness in the epicenter, there is also great hope. Let's consider how we can pray for peace and prepare for war along with the Joshua Fund as they plan to meet people's needs if and when war breaks out in the Middle East. Media from the entire Epicenter Conference can be found at epicenterconference.com

Message SummaryOnly God knows what tomorrow holds and through our text, He communicates both warnings and encouragement about the future. Let’s heed His Word and prepare for what is to come—not only great pain and suffering, but also salvation for those who believe.
Media from the entire Epicenter Conference can be found at epicenterconference.com

Message SummaryShe did what she could—her gift of costly nard in an alabaster flask was broken and poured out to prepare Jesus for his burial. But the disciples condemned her—scolded her for the extravagant gift. Is that how we view those who are extravagantly sold out to Christ? Through this text, we learn from her sacrifice and Jesus' commendation to the heart of what we do be done in extravagant devotion to God.

Message SummaryFranklin Graham is noted for using every occasion to preach the gospel, inviting people to take part in God's plan of salvation—whether on the mission field, on-site at a natural disaster, behind the microphone of a national news program, or in a church sanctuary. From the story of a blind man healed in Mark 10:46-52, Franklin delivers a powerful presentation of the good news. You too can be healed and your sins can be forgiven! Come to Jesus!

Message SummaryThroughout history, the question has been asked: “How long?”How long will sin go unpunished? How long will the rebellious prosper? How long will God allow suffering? The answer is: not much longer. When the time is right, God will once and for all prove His power over Satan and sin. Will you be ready?

Message SummaryLife has its highs and lows. When we are at our lowest, who can we count on to answer the deep, anguished cry of our heart? Who can we call when things become so painful, we can't even believe it's real? David would tell us that there is One who neither slumbers nor sleeps, One who is ready and able to answer our call.

Message SummaryAs a follower of Jesus, how are you representing God? In Numbers 20:1-13, the people contended with Moses and Aaron. They did not trust God and the leadership He appointed. Likewise, Moses and Aaron allowed their anger and frustration to control them. They rebelled against the Lord and misrepresented Him to the people. As we consider this text, we learn that as ambassadors for Christ, we must be gracious and submissive both in our leadership and in our following.

Message SummaryMark Hitchcock is a well-known proponent of Bible prophecy and a popular author who has written over 20 books on important end-times topics. He is the senior pastor of Faith Bible Church near Edmond, Oklahoma and has served as adjunct faculty member of the Dallas Theological Seminary.

Message SummaryThe Bible says that God destroyed Sodom and the cities of the plain with fire from heaven—an event that took out an entire civilization in the blink of an eye. Dr. Steven Collins, Dean of the College of Archaeology and Biblical History at Trinity Southwest University and lead archaeologist at the Tall el-Hammam dig in Jordan, presents the evidence of the city of Sodom and its miraculous destruction. His extraordinary discoveries will strengthen your faith and bolster your trust in God's Word.

Message SummaryJust like the disciples rowing on a stormy sea, the church in America must face exhausting and frustrating circumstances with courage, strength, and perseverance, knowing that Jesus prays for us. Let’s find that perfect blend of truth and love—to tell people about Jesus and not be afraid to take a stand on issues.

Message SummaryAs we celebrate Mother's Day with the wives, daughters, sisters, and mothers all around us, K. P. Yohannan paints a portrait of his mother and the influence that she had, both in her family and in India. We catch just a tiny glimpse of a country with 62 million child laborers suffering on the streets and millions of mothers who have never heard of our Jesus to whom they can take their children. K. P.'s mother would say, "Our greatest privilege is to love people."

Message SummaryIn preparation for ministry, the prophet Isaiah was given a vision of the Lord's holiness—a vision which drove him to repentance and service. As we consider this text, we uncover important principles to apply to our own worship of the Lord.

Message SummaryThe Jewish scribes had such great reverence for God's Word that it was of the utmost importance to preserve the Scriptures accurately. They took great measures—memorizing 4,000 laws before they could begin to write—to ensure it would be copied, pronounced, and interpreted precisely. Josh McDowell presents to us one of the rarest scrolls in the world, called the Lodz Torah Scroll, showing us that God will always provide the means for His sacred Word to be available to His church.

Message SummaryWhat we believe about God and what He tells us in His Word will affect our lifestyles and our behavior. When we accept Christ into our hearts, we become His representatives, and we must begin to live like what we believe is true. Christian comedian Brad Stine challenges us to push past our comfortable boundaries and take back our culture.

Message SummaryIn Hebrews 11, we read testimonies of men and women who demonstrated extraordinary faith. When God commanded them to do something, they obeyed. From their examples, we learn that in our weaknesses, we are made strong, faith requires courage to face difficulties, and obeying the Lord is about using the faith we have rather than the amount of faith we possess.

Message SummaryAs believers, we can never outgrow the gospel—when we think we have, we are actually moving backwards. Paul's letter to the Romans was a treatise explaining the good news of Jesus Christ, and the recipients were saints! In this refreshing study, we are reminded about the power and love that was displayed on the cross, and how our Lord Jesus Christ has conquered all!

Message SummaryEveryone encounters trials. We can't escape them, but we can choose how we react to them. In 1 Samuel, we read about a woman who realized that God is bigger than any circumstance. As Hannah poured out her soul to the Lord, she was filled with joy that only comes from Him. Through her life, we learn that God will sustain us through any trial and He will use our pain to further His kingdom.

Message SummaryJohn the Baptist was the herald of Jesus, the coming King. As he prepared to present the Messiah to the world, he preached one simple message: "Repent!" Interestingly, John preached this message to the Jews, especially those who were religious. In this study, we learn the meaning of true repentance and how that leads to true sanctification.

Message SummaryThe Old Testament is packed with Scriptures that point to the coming of Christ. By looking closely at the ark of the covenant, guest speaker Don McClure gives us insight about how the tabernacle points to Jesus, and he encourages us to give up our burdens and surrender every area of our lives to the Lord.

Message SummaryOut of all the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus, He chose only one from the prophet Isaiah to share with the people in Nazareth—one that revealed His character. As we study this portrait of Jesus in Luke 4, we also learn about the power that dwelt inside Him: the power of the Holy Spirit, which now dwells in us.

Message SummaryEveryone wants to be happy, but not everyone is happy. We know that the world's idea of happiness is broken, because nothing from the world can satisfy us. But God wants us to have lasting joy. As we look at the passage of Scripture known as the Beatitudes, we discover what true happiness is and Who can fix our happiness.

Message SummaryJeremiah is known as the "weeping prophet." He tried to warn the nation of Israel to repent or God would send judgment. They didn't listen. As we study this passage, it may look like Jeremiah's life was wasted, but God never puts anything to waste, even our trials. Pastor Levi Lusko shares the tough realities of following Jesus, but reminds us that Jesus will always renew our strength.

Message SummaryGod sought to deliver Lot and his family from the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah, but Lot's wife looked back, disobeying the Lord. Franklin Graham teaches from a passage in Luke 17 and reminds us that God will judge all sin, but we don't have to receive this judgment. Because of His compassionate love, the Lord made a way for us to be redeemed?through His Son, Jesus.

Message SummaryObituary, funeral, afterlife?all those words describe your future. The reality is that just like we were all born, we will all die. Like Elisha, with our dying breaths, we should be speaking in faith, leaving a legacy of faith that will outlast our time on earth. The end of your life doesn't have to be the end of the impact your life will have.

Message SummaryOut of all the things the disciples could've asked Jesus to teach them, they asked Him how they should pray. In Matthew 6, Jesus shared the model prayer—the Lord's Prayer. In the passage that leads up to and covers the first part of the Lord's Prayer, we learn about the importance, power, and promise of prayer.

Message SummaryTime and time again, Joseph encountered hardships that were not his doing: harsh treatment, betrayal, false accusation, and apathy. But Joseph was always mindful of God and remained obedient despite the unfairness he met. We learn it was his reverence of God that gave Him peace to get through every situation—and God raised him from a slave to the second in command over all of Egypt. His life seemed to be an epic fail, but as we study his reactions, we see how God turned his life into an epic feat.

Message SummaryThe authors of the Bible wrote about false teachers who used deception to bring division and destruction to the body of Christ. After examining 1 John 2:26-27, we also look at various deceivers, their methods, and their ultimate end. We are challenged to examine our lives for areas where the Enemy could try to mislead us, and we learn how we can arm ourselves with God's everlasting, unchanging truth.

Message SummaryPeter called his fellow believers to be holy and reinforced this exhortation with an Old Testament command from the Lord. Today, there are many who walk in darkness—even believers—but as we study 1 Peter 1:15-16, we are reminded to live honorable and holy lives for the Lord. Let's consider what Scripture says about holiness, glean from examples of strong believers who came before us, and learn about the reasons for living a holy life.

Message SummaryJesus' parable about the prodigal son is one of the most well-known parables from the Bible. But as we discover who Jesus' specific audience was, we learn that the son's warm welcoming by his father isn't the only—or even main—message Jesus was communicating. In this study of Luke 15:11-32, we learn about three types of relationships with the Father: the rebellious, repentant, and religious.

Message SummaryAs we search the Scriptures to find out God's thoughts about generosity, we discover that we are called to make giving an integral part of our lives. Through two passages from both the Old and New Testament, we see how generosity is a call to obedience from the Lord as well as a demonstration of faith on our part. When we give generously, we become more and more like God as He blesses us, and the world can see that our God is alive and moving.

Message SummaryIn Matthew 7:21-29, Jesus told a story about two men who had built duplicate houses, but there was one critical difference: the foundations. Jesus used this story to call out the imposters who claimed to be His followers. In this study, we are reminded that God has a building code for our lives and His Word is our blueprint. We must carefully consider if we're building on the unshakeable foundation of Jesus Christ.

Message SummaryIn 2 Timothy, the apostle Paul wrote to the young pastor Timothy to urge him to remain steadfast in his faith and ministry. As we study this verse from chapter 1, we look at Paul's call to be bold in Christ. Guest speaker Victor Marx weaves his personal testimony into this powerful message as he addresses fear, redemption, marriage, purity, and forgiveness.

Message SummaryJesus performed countless miracles in His time; the Bible even says that not all of them were written down. We look at one of those miracles in John 2:1-11, when Jesus transformed water into wine at a wedding. In this study with Pastor Daniel Fusco, we see how Jesus turned a seemingly ordinary event into something extraordinary, showing us that He desires to be actively involved in our lives—transforming us so we can transform this world.

Message SummaryAt any point in life, we will either be coming out of, entering into, or found in the middle of a storm. As we study Matthew 14:22-33, when Jesus' disciples were caught in a literal storm, we learn seven important lessons from guest speaker Dr. Erwin Lutzer about how to survive our present and future storms—whether they're physical, emotional, or spiritual.

Message SummaryUp until the last several decades, the world has taught that truth exists, but we've seen the rise of relativism in our society since then. Because Jesus talked a lot about truth in the Bible, this issue should be important to believers. In this study, Pastor Brian Nixon helps us understand the world's changing definition of truth and the Bible's fixed definition of truth. Expounding on the book of 2 John, he also explains how truth plays out practically in the lives of believers.

Message SummaryWhen we think of the twelve apostles, we sometimes get the idea that they were an elite, holy group of men who effortlessly followed Jesus. But as we study Matthew 10:1-4, we see that almost the opposite is true. While they did have dedication in following Christ, they didn't have it all together, and they made mistakes along the way. In this message, Pastor Nate Heitzig explains how God used even this ragtag group of men to radically change the world, showing that God wants to take us as we are and transform us so we can also impact the world.

Message SummaryIn this study, Sean McDowell takes us through a number of Bible passages to help us understand the biblical view of homosexuality. As he shares his experiences and research on the topic, he also gives helpful advice on how we can address this issue in a compassionate and thoughtful way.

Message SummaryMost churches today are filled with passive spectators rather than active participants. As believers, we are called to join Jesus on His mission: to fulfill God's purposes on the earth. In this message, Pastor Ed Stetzer explains how we can live engaged in mission, calling us to glorify God by using our spiritual gifts to serve Him and others.

Message SummaryIn this life, we go through storms—whether it's sickness, the death of a loved one, or the betrayal of someone we trust—and we can't avoid them. In Matthew 8:23-27, we find Jesus and His disciples caught in a literal storm as they crossed the Sea of Galilee. As we take a look at their different responses to the storm, we see how God grows us and comforts us in the trials of life.

Message SummaryWhen we enter one of life's storms, we must remember that God wants us to see Him in those circumstances and put our trust in Him. In this study, we learn that Jesus taught this lesson to His disciples as they journeyed across the Sea of Galilee. We also discover that even though we can't control the storms in our lives, we can be comforted with the truth that Jesus has appointed those storms, will meet us in them, and will deliver us from them.

Message SummaryIn this special message from guest speaker Franklin Graham, we learn how God is using Operation Christmas Child to raise up young evangelists across the globe. Then, as we study Mark 10:17-22, we see how the rich young ruler fell short in his relationship with God: he put material things before the one true God. Franklin presents a bold gospel message, explaining how Jesus Christ took our sins upon Himself and is the only one who can save us.

Message SummaryA number of times throughout their history, God's chosen people disobeyed Him and strayed from His commands. But He continually extended His hand of mercy so they could be restored. Today we might find ourselves in need of restoration and renewal, and God is ready to work in us to transform us. As we examine this passage in Joel, we discover three steps that we must take on the journey to restoration.

Message SummaryIn our culture today, Christians are known mostly for judging and condemning others, but that's not what we are called to do in Scripture. In this message, Pastor Nate Heitzig explains what Jesus said concerning judgment, and we learn how we should stop condemning others and instead start being more considerate so that we can start a lovement.

Message SummaryWhen we think of leadership and greatness, we probably don't think about doing something insignificant in order to be significant. But throughout Scripture, we are reminded that a true leader serves others and that someone who is great sacrifices much. In this message, Pastor Jesse Lusko gets to the heart of what true leadership really is, drawing from the example of Christ.

Message Summary People are constantly finding new causes to rally behind, but we can't change society then expect people to get better. In fact, Jesus claimed the opposite—people must change before society can get better—and He demonstrated that by loving the unlovable and caring for the rejected. Pastor Nate Heitzig challenges us to be part of the uprising of love as he explains what that means and how we can live it out.

Message SummaryWhat are we as believers called to pursue? Matthew 6:33 provides the answer: the kingdom of God. In this message, Pastor Justin Marbury shares about his experience with planting a church and explores this verse in depth. As we look at how Jesus brought three things to light concerning the pursuit of the kingdom, we're challenged to overcome our fear and trust in God's provision.

Message SummaryIn this message, Chip Lusko explains how everything we experience in this life—both good and bad—pales in comparison with what we'll one day experience in glory. Taking us through Romans 8:18, Chip encourages us to carefully consider life and death so that we can be assured of our eternal fate and be freed to live out God's adventure for us.

Message SummaryThere are two questions every person must answer: Who am I, and what am I supposed to do? If you're a believer, then you're in the body of Christ as a minister—or a minister-in-training—of the kingdom. In this teaching, Bob Shank explores how God matures us and what we can do to serve others the way Jesus did.

Message SummaryFor millennia, mankind has struggled to understand why an all-powerful God allows suffering and evil to exist. Using Psalm 73 as a springboard, Nelson Walker explores this issue in depth, ultimately encouraging us to trust the God who invites us to join Him in an eternal dance of love.

Message SummaryNot many Christians live the kind of inspired life that Paul the apostle did, but God promises that we can rise above pain and hardships and become more than conquerors. Drawing from the marvelous example of Paul, Neil Ortiz explains how you are unstoppable when you take God at His Word and obediently follow Him day by day.

Message SummaryGrace—the favor shown by God to sinners—is unique to the Christian faith. Sharing two stories about two people who experienced the immense love of God, Lee Strobel illuminates grace for us in a new way and explains two important things we need to know about the God of grace.

Message SummaryWouldn't it be great if temptation disappeared when you became a believer? Following the Lord doesn't make you exempt from temptation and sin; it actually makes you a bigger target. In this message, Nate Heitzig discusses the seriousness of sin and the hope we have when we trust the Lord to fight on our behalf.

Message SummaryAs believers, we have the privilege of being God's children—He is our Abba Father, meaning we have a special, close relationship with Him. In this message, Ben Courson explains what it means that God is our Father, pointing out some of His attributes and revealing who we are to Him.

Message SummaryThe Bible portrays Jesus as both a ferocious lion and a gentle lamb—traits that we should strive to emulate. In this message, Victor Marx mixes parts of his personal testimony and stories from his recent trip to the Middle East with impacting truths about how we can have compassion for others as we live boldly for Christ.

Message SummaryDr. Richard Furman is a vascular surgeon and cofounder of World Medical Mission. In this Expound Interactive, Pastor Skip interviews Dr. Furman about a variety of health topics and how we can stay active for the Lord for many years to come.

Message SummaryIn this special interview with Free Burma Rangers founder Dave Eubank, we hear about his family's ongoing ministry to the people of Burma (Myanmar), as well as their recent trip to Kurdistan. Dave also shares about their expanding partnership with Reload Love and what believers can do in the face of terrorism.

Message SummaryWorry goes to war against our faith every day. Life’s "what ifs" will beat us down and steal our attention if we let them. Thankfully, God’s Word gives us a tutorial on how to flip the script and go to war against the worry in our lives.

Message SummaryIn this special message, Ken Mansfield shares his testimony of going from being the U.S. manager of the Beatles' Apple Records to being broken, humbled, and eventually saved by the Lord later in life. Looking back on his thirty years in the music industry, Ken encourages us to see how God weaves the events and circumstances of our lives together to ultimately bring Him glory.

Message SummaryLions have spectacular vision, and they are better at processing light than humans. We need to become better at processing light, opening the pupils of our soul so we can see God's plan, purposes, promises, and presence even in the midst of our problems and pain. In this message, Levi Lusko gives us four ways to see life through the telescope of faith—through the eyes of a lion.

Message SummaryWe live in a fallen and corrupt world: boundaries are being pushed further, headlines are more shocking, and moral lines are becoming more blurred. As believers, we can respond by either passively complaining about it or by standing up for the gospel. In this message from Nate Heitzig, we look at the Beatitudes, learning how to live a sanctified life in the midst of moral decay and increasing persecution.

Message SummarySometimes one decision can lead to a multitude of bad decisions. Unfortunately, that was the case for Abraham's nephew, Lot. Teaching from Genesis 13, Franklin Graham explains the devastating effects of sin and its highest consequence—being separated from God. He also explains how we can rest in the truth that Christ came and died to save us from our sin.

Message SummaryGod wants us to impact our world, not just by becoming better versions of ourselves, but by influencing our culture. In this New Year's message, Nate Heitzig explains how we can be salt to the world and a light in the darkness as we share the gospel and live a life that is visibly different.

Message SummaryThe difficulty, pains, and distractions of life can hit every one of us: from the rich to the poor and the ordinary to the popular. They can steal our joy and peace as well as devour the plans and purposes that God has for us. Steve Wilburn encourages us to not underestimate what God can do in our lives, and he challenges us to allow the Holy Spirit to use us to reach others for Christ.

Message SummaryRepentance means being sorry enough to change. In this message, Kelly Bransford teaches the importance of going God's way instead of our own. As we look at the story of the prodigal son, we learn how God deals with us when we run away from Him.

Message SummaryIt takes courage to be a true follower of Christ—to trust God, obey Him, and speak His truth. Unfortunately, the church has seen a striking decline in courage. Steve Berger challenges us to find the source of our courage and to bring it back to the church so we can impact the world for Christ.

Message SummaryWe were made to crave the things of heaven, our eternal home. As believers, we know that our future contains fullness of joy with Christ, but because the things of this earth are attractive, we can easily become preoccupied with them. Mat Pirolo teaches how we can be heavenly minded so we can make the most of our time on earth.

Message SummaryOur cares and problems can often be too much to bear, and when God seems distant in those times, He wants us to call on Him and trust in His loving-kindness. Sometimes God even allows us to come to the end of ourselves so we have no choice but to rely on Him. Nelson Walker reminds us that we can trust in God's unfailing love to get us through anything.

Message SummaryA recurring theme in Scripture is that life is messy, but Jesus is real. Daniel Fusco addresses this tension head-on and highlights a hope for anyone living at this intersection of life and faith. He shares a pathway set out in the book of Ephesians about how to walk honestly through the messiness of life while staying focused on the certainty that Jesus is real.

Message SummaryMany people know very little about the Lord due to biblical illiteracy. God's self-disclosure of His nature can be found in His Word, and when we don't know the Bible, we lack a proper understanding of Him. In this teaching, Brian Nixon looks at three characteristics of God's nature, and we learn how we should respond with our conduct.

Message SummaryMany of us struggle with insecurity, feeling uncertain about our worth, value, or place in the world, so we develop defense mechanisms that cause us to feel like strangers in our own souls. Insecurity is real, but it is no match for the name of Jesus and the power of God's presence. In this teaching from Levi Lusko, we learn how to be content in who God made us to be.

Message SummaryGod has called all believers to be fishers of men. In this message by Nate Heitzig, we learn how to be efficient witnesses for Jesus as we allow God to use our natural gifts in supernatural ways.

Message SummaryGod is the team owner of the church, and He has appointed our head coach, our senior pastor, to lead us. If we follow the leader and are all in, we will bear fruit for the kingdom of God. In this message, Neil Ortiz reminds us that our goal is unity in diversity.

Message SummaryGod desires to see His lost children come home. In this message by Jason Mills, we learn that we are not valuable to God because of what we do; we are valuable to Him because we are His children. As we study the parable of the prodigal son, we learn that the Father is always waiting to forgive all those who want to be forgiven.

Message SummaryDr. James Emery White is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is also the founder and president of Serious Times, a ministry that explores the intersection of faith and culture. Dr. White has authored twenty books that have been translated into ten languages. Find his resources at churchandculture.org.

Message SummaryThe existence and location of the ancient city of Sodom proves the historical accuracy of the Bible. In this presentation by Dr. Steven Collins, we learn that the evidence of the existence and destruction of this city is a huge reason for scholars to take the Bible—and God—seriously.

Message SummaryBelievers are called to reflect Christ to the world. In this message, Pastor Tony Clark demonstrates that we are on the earth to reach lost souls, and we must begin by being Christian leaders in our own homes. When we reflect the light of Christ in our life, we show the beauty of God to the world.

Message SummaryDr. Erwin Lutzer serves as pastor emeritus of the Moody Church in Chicago. He is an award-winning author of more than twenty books, including Rescuing the Gospel: The Story and Significance of the Reformation. A clear expositor of the Bible, he is the featured speaker on Running to Win, heard weekdays at 6 am on KNKT 107.1 FM.

Message SummaryAs Americans, we have long enjoyed freedom of religion, but the church is under attack like never before. In this message, Dr. Erwin Lutzer shares five false gospels being taught in our nation today, challenging us to live for Christ in a generation that has lost its way.

Message SummaryWe all have days that we will never forget—many of those days can be painful and feel like chaos. But God can use the chaos of our lives to promote the gospel and save more people if we leverage our pain for His purpose. As Mat Pirolo teaches from Acts 8:1-8, he explains that God can use us to do a mighty work, even if we don't see the fruit right away.

Message SummaryAmerica has experienced several spiritual revivals in its history—and we are past due for another one. In this message, Nelson Walker teaches that our nation will only experience revival if we humble ourselves before God, turn from our wicked ways, and call on the Lord to save us.

Message SummaryInstead of killing Mephibosheth, King David showed him loving grace by restoring Saul's property to his family. In this message by Franklin Graham, we are reminded that God, by His grace, restores life to those who turn to Him in Jesus' name.

Message SummaryIn our materialistic culture, we can sometimes lose sight of what really matters. In this message by Kelly Bransford, we learn that life is about so much more than just surviving; it's about investing in our eternity.

Message SummaryGod loves us more than we could possibly understand. In turn, Jesus commanded us to love God as well. In this study of Psalm 8, Nelson Walker explains that to love God completely, we must know Him more intimately, obey Him wholeheartedly, and follow Him willingly.

Message SummaryToday, we explore a mystery of the Christian experience: Why do Christians struggle with behavior so contradictory to their beliefs? The author of Romans put it this way: “I do not understand what I do” (7:15, NIV). Let’s look for an answer and a solution.

Message SummaryWorship is so much more than songs or a musical genre. But more important than a definition for worship is our motivation behind it. God’s worthiness should transform worship from a musical style to a lifestyle.

Message SummaryWe all carry heavy burdens in our life: burdens of pain, sorrow, and sin. In this message, Nate Heitzig teaches that we as Christians are not victims of chance, but rather we are God-led individuals who must bring our burdens to the Lord through prayer.

Message SummaryWe were created to worship. Some people worship money, power, or themselves. But there is nothing in this world worthy of our worship except Christ. In this message, Nate Heitzig challenges us to let go of our doubt, fear, and faithlessness and give it to God.

Message SummaryChristian persecution is at an all-time high globally. But that’s not the whole story. A new Jesus movement is erupting out of the Middle East, and persecuted believers are leading the way. Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the book of Daniel, these new believers are fearless. Jesus is right there, standing with them, and the fiery furnace of today is the growing threat of Islamic terrorism.

Message SummaryThe Bible states that God destroyed the city of Sodom with fire. Dr. Steven Collins has spent the last twelve years excavating what he believes to be the archaeological ruins of this ancient city. In this message, Dr. Collins teaches that the discovery of Sodom is important because biblical archaeology is the most powerful means of demonstrating the Bible's historical authenticity.

Message SummaryBen Courson is the director of Hope Generation and author of three books. He is a gifted and nationally renowned speaker based out of Applegate Christian Fellowship, and he has a national TV and radio program. His humorous, uplifting, and high-energy style coupled with a gift to communicate God’s heart is hugely impactful.

Message SummaryA person's worth is determined by the image in which they were created: the image of God. In this message, Nate Heitzig gives us some principles about sharing our faith, reminding us that as Christians, we are called to tell others about Jesus.

Message SummaryThough it may seem like it at times, God is not a far-off, distant being. In this message, Mat Pirolo teaches that we live in a fantastic, beautiful universe because we serve a very real God. As we study Psalm 8, we learn that nothing expresses God's desire to be with us more than the cross of Christ.

Message SummaryProductive change doesn't happen by accident; we have to be intentional about it. In this message, Jason Mills examines the life of King Josiah, a man who recognized that something needed to change in the nation of Israel and took steps to see that it was done. As we study 1 Kings 22-23, we learn the practical steps we can take to see change in our own lives.

Message SummaryAs humans, we lack perseverance because of fatigue and fear. To persevere, we need to be reminded of the cause for which we are fighting. In this message, Neil Ortiz teaches that as Christians, we are called to live for God in every facet of our lives, even if our circumstances cause us to be afraid and fatigued.

Message SummaryOur society is becoming more disjointed and divided: rather than celebrating what we have in common, we emphasize what separates us. But in the midst of this, people are looking for a place to belong, a community where they feel safe, and a family they can trust and love. In this message, Nate Heitzig teaches that this is what the church is for: to be a home where people can find love and the Beloved—Jesus Christ.

Message SummaryWhat we think informs and influences what we do. A Christian worldview is faith in Jesus and faith that seeks to understand what God has created. In this message, Brian Nixon teaches that in order to cultivate a Christian worldview, we must be saved, be continuously sanctified, and study God's Word.